Patience, Rei-chan
by Wafflegirl0304
Summary: **AU of episode 6** If that was the case, then Rei would have to do a whole lotta waiting. Character death. Nagisa-centric.


**Yep. My first Free! fanfic. ;w; I just hope this isn't THAT bad. Please leave a review, constructive criticism is welcomed as always, and enjoy!**

****WARNING: character death**

"Hold on, Haru-chan! It's not safe to go in alone!"

Nagisa's heartbeat soared as he tore his shirt off his body, feet advancing towards the water quickly. Wind and water whipped his skin, even faster as he ran. Haruka was already submerged, crawling forward through the waves at a frenzied pace.

He sucked in air and dove into the freezing water. Sea water stung his eyes for a second, then faded into a comfortable burning sensation-thing. He settled for that. It wasn't like he had a choice anyway. He ploughed forward feverishly, trying to catch up to Haruka. Lightning illuminated the dark clouds above them.

Nagisa caught a glimpse of Makoto's head of tawny hair, going down in a way that was so not-Makoto. The fear was surfacing now. He'd known the ocean hadn't always been Makoto's cup of tea. Rather, it was a cup of tea with poison swirling about as one of the ingredients, and a whole bunch of other scary things that kill you. Nagisa himself wasn't really afraid of the ocean, but he knew Makoto was. And he was worried. He hoped he was okay.

"I'll get Rei-chan!" he yelled over the roaring waves, seeing a blue-haired head bobbing up and down a distance away.

"Please!" came Haruka's reply.

Nagisa kicked harder for Rei. He could hear Rei coughing, fighting for air at the mercy of the fierce winds and water that tossed him about like a rag doll. His heart hammered against his chest. "Rei-chan, I'm coming!"

He felt the sky darken with the sea. He didn't think it could get any darker. But then he heard the sound of water riding itself and his gaze shifted. His eyes widened at the sight of the huge wave. "No _way_," he gasped.

It loomed over them. He could almost hear the ominous music in the background as the water gained in height, climbing upwards into the dark, stormy sky. For a moment, Nagisa was stunned to the point that he was even fascinated by the size of this thing. In all of his years on this planet he'd never seen such a colossal slab of water up close. Not even the tsunami waves could compare to this.

Well, okay, that was honestly pushing it.

Nagisa squeezed his eyes shut as the water crashed down over him (and probably, over Rei too), gushing into his face and chest. It reminded of his friends back in elementary school who used to tackle him all the time. Just that this was way more violent and wet and salty. Nagisa came up for air, gasping into the falling rain. He spit out painfully salty water. He shook the water out of his hair before hurriedly glancing around to find Rei. _Don't get distracted_, he thought. _Just please do not._

Thunder shook his body. He knew he would panic if he thought of what could happen to Rei if he wasted more time. The ocean was a way more frightening place when it was storming and dark and you couldn't swim properly. Or if you were Makoto, too. There were things like box jellyfish and stingrays you had to worry about. Nagisa wasn't sure if they were native to these waters, but he knew they were out there, and the thought did scare him a little. He had to find Rei quickly.

"Rei-chan!" he yelled after a second's frantic searching. "Rei-chaaaaan!"

"Nagi—"

Nagisa's reaction was instantaneous. His head snapped in the direction of Rei's voice to see his friend's arms thrashing about, wild in the water. Choking noises cut off the call of his name. His heart did a backflip and his mouth stretched into a smile.

"Hold on, Rei-chan!" cried Nagisa, and he kicked hard in the water, propelling his body forward. The distance between him and the spluttering figure shortened until finally Nagisa had grabbed ahold of Rei's arms and was somewhat desperately dragging Rei towards the nearest land in sight. The fact that their tents were nowhere in sight didn't seem to faze the blond. He was sure everything was going to be okay, even if they had been separated from Haruka and Makoto. Even so, he hoped for their safety again.

And then, he was hoping for his own too. Rei was heavier than Nagisa had been expecting, and within a few moments his arms were already aching. Still he pulled forward with Rei's body close. He felt his friend's heartbeat, steady but accelerated, and struggled on with the knowledge that Rei was still alright. His fingers touched sand, and he thrust his body forward onto the sand, dumping Rei beside him onto the damp sand. Nagisa breathed deeply. That had certainly taken its toll on him. The rain fell like thin, watery ropes, bombarding his bare back.

He glanced over at Rei, who had rolled over and was coughing out sea water. His deep, choked gasps followed as he sat up, elbows dug into the sand. Nagisa let out an involuntary squeal of delight.

"Rei-chan! You're okay! We made it!" he cheered, albeit a little tiredly.

Rei's gaze clicked to meet his, his lavender irises dim with physical and emotional exhaustion. A smile flickered across his face, lingering for a split second before a tired frown washed it away.

"I-I lost your kickboard."

"Pfft, it's nothing! All that matters is that you're safe now." Nagisa stood up and reached down, sticking another smile on his face that he hoped would reassure Rei. The guy was seriously too tense all the time. Rei's eyes drifted shut for a split second before he took Nagisa's hand. It was cool to the touch like the ocean water.

He pointed towards the huge, rocky overhang further in. "Look, there's a cave thing over there. Sit down first, I'll get the kickboard if it comes floating along."

"But—"

"Go!"

He watched Rei hurry towards shelter with an air of satisfaction about him. Nagisa felt better already. The fear was draining, confidence taking its place. The only thing now would be to look for Haruka and Makoto. He was sure that they'd be on the same island, seeing as it was the nearest to the incident's location. He ran his fingers through his damp hair and noticed the kickboard coming into view, the rain beating down hard on the flat surface. Nagisa reached down and took it into his hands. He skipped back to Rei.

"Here you go,"

Rei accepted the board solemnly. "Thank you very much."

Nagisa chuckled lightly. "Are you okay?" he asked, peering down at his taller friend. Rei wouldn't look him in the eye.

The former track runner pushed his bangs away from his eyes. Violet met light crimson in a serious stare. "When Makoto-senpai was trying to save me, he was acting differently from usual."

Nagisa had suspected this, or Haruka wouldn't have needed to fetch Makoto. He stared down at his feet, silently debating whether to tell Rei. Makoto would do it himself, right? When he was ready. Eventually.

"It'll be revealed in due time," was all he said. "Patience, Rei-chan."

Rei's stare hardened, but Nagisa countered it with a grin. The blush rose on his friend's cheeks.

"Now, let's go search for Haru-chan and Mako-chan!"

"Y-Yeah..."

The pair left the shelter and stepped back into the pouring rain. It was still thundering as heavily as ever. "No sign of them," said Rei, scanning the immediate area around them. They started down the island, following the water's edge. Nagisa watched the waves roll in the sea, though still harsh, was surprisingly calmer than it had been just now. He wondered if he had imagined the huge wave that had robbed him of much air.

"H-How can you be so calm?" Rei's voice shattered the silence between them. Nagisa glanced back at him.

"Calm? Me?" He didn't know, actually. It was a part of his personality. Laid-back, laughing, smiling Hazuki Nagisa. He couldn't explain his omnipresent urge to smile at everyone or to be enthusiastic. To him, it just seemed like the best thing to do. Especially with all his best friends never smiling—they could use a cheer-upper.

Nagisa shrugged. "Haru-chan and Mako-chan are good swimmers. Even if Mako-chan wasn't acting like himself, he should be fine soon. Especially with Haru-chan with him. The waters should be in their favour." he said quietly.

Rei said nothing. He held the kickboard tighter to his chest.

Finally, two figures came into view. Nagisa's heart leaped for joy again. They'd found them, and everything was okay! He exchanged a glance with Rei before they both broke into a jog towards them.

"Hey guys! We found you—"

Nagisa stopped abruptly. He felt ice line his insides. Cold sweat accompanied the raindrops that trickled down his body. An invisible dagger made its way into his heart.

Haruka's shoulders were shaking, silver tears falling like broken beads onto the unmoving body of Tachibana Makoto. His face was hidden by raven hair, but Nagisa already knew how it looked like, even though Haruka hadn't cried in years.

The sky thundered.


End file.
